Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1887-03-03
WHOLE NO. u,l93.

! lit i anu li'c tuTCatehlng river. When these
| eYees break, great damage is,lonc. Acres an,
destroyed by being covered IN thousands 81
tcieS- Acres are actually rut ON in or.at hoics
70 10 ana 20 feet deep, and swept ont over the
ann 1ou cannot feel this evil when Won mn
gathering your oranges antI liking yriiI Streets
lar away from the scene. lat we arf. broi,oIt
INTO direct contact with 1t. and have To- 20 into
mt Lhe 19',rts- We heFer bad one scintilla Of law
passed 10 protect us, intrO,suced in the other
House. the first Petition shat was e,er
dFaNn against hyGaulie reiuinr in 1S75
and .ls'i; IL was laughing: stock at mat
Inc. To tn nk that we yould brve
the presumption 10 say that the shines shouIj
stop putting down debris upon us, Public squ-
tHhen' changed when the State had to put iys
i"l'h III rs p9eket ann help To- protect this
country, and our Courts realized tigi there was
- cHahse OF sentiment, ana We began TO have
success IN the Courts. Wchave eucsned these
i-iSe Hy"Faullc corporations until. az | suited
tite other day, the waters IF the Sacramento
river tiowed past this city clearer LAST summer
than they have done fifteen wears before A.
Wy ny 'hlhe ti11e me waters of 5he Yuba snd the
waters OF she Bear, and thu waters of tho
Feather river are muddy Yos 90 mn trera IN
day and ycn will find they are not iii for use
1oI 60 up there in the summor time when
there : only a small stream running tEat Is
loatied With Debris, very much more than il can
carry ana IL Is depositing al the time and rais-
ing the bed Of the stream. When rhe weieFst Of
waters come down in the winter season and We
have deep water, then Of course 1t cuts il ont
ana carries IL down the Sacramento river into
the bay and hsrbor OF san Francisco II is idlr
10 ven me that Use bay is not fast iiiltng up
do not want to ask any man on this floor to
do what he considers to be wrong If he ba-
lieVeS u IS not an evil 10 continue this work 20
legaiH, thls hydraulic mining so that obey can
say 10 toHgr IS say to our Courts. Nhv we
are worEins under a law pass Sed hy or I.egislg
iuie' Why, Id you The other ds,y flM I
hti nuiIerous resolutions bearing the SeiI Of
the counties sent to me, impluriug me 20 s,f,ar
this bill calling ON their own rt tT-cspntaiive~
cI ing an the representatives. from ther uari,
OF iHe state 10 JON hands and helpto defeat
this lniquitous bin. They said We have liti-
saIed Tor years past we have spent large
amounts of money. We have gained suits. and
we 40 not want y0u 10 legaliZe the matter row.
- that We viii have to have this litigation IN
the Courts all over again
We have got 10 commence and condemn those
dams We have got To- cruelty This law through
the courts and all the time this is being accom-
pitShed these mines are being un ard this de-
hri- is coming down upon orr lands and de
Stroylug uCt only our farms but our uaIiEabie
streams A little over one year ago there was IL
memorial TO the Secretary OF Wer circulated in
these valley counties set ing forth the evils
that We mad been subiectedtu. 10 iSt too long flr
me to read. but it tells. without exagseration
OF the amount of land that had been DESTROYED.
II complained that these rivers had been Cc-
StToyed, and that we hal been doing our utmost
to stop his evil; that We believed the lnIted
States was bli"ated under the contract made
with this state when We became Il part of the
Union. % see these streams kept open and free
tu navigation. We believed it was the duty of
the Federal Government to look into this mat
Ter. he counties that took part in this. and
the Boards of Supervisors thst signed this
memorial were Of Tehama Coluss Solauo
Napa, luba, Suttor, sacramento ana san
frAuri>CD These counties signed this memorial
unanimously. / myself was before the Board
OF >uper' i>oTs Of san Francisco, and | see
gentleman upon his floor That presented this 70
that Board. The members signed it uuani-
IHoU~}y, and j. was sent oa. / desire to name
ais" tAl Boards ot Trade, The CuUuciimen and
the Mayors who signed this memorial They
repr -Neuttd the following cities. Mary svillc.
Sncuunento- stockton, Oakland and san Fran
clsHp- j myself took this memorial % the Board
ri supervisors in the city of UakIlud and to
The Mayor Ut thet city, ami they said That
i~ night we believe lyduulic mining ought 10
he stopped We do not believe they have n right
to rum This debris upon the Val ey il is an illegal
thing They readily signed u and It was sent
To Washington, where IL was referred 10 the At
orney-4eneral Mr. Garland. He examined it
thoroughly and decided that something must
be done. He gave his decision and Congress
was asked to come to our rescue, and it did So
through the river and harbor bill. Invent to
read the action taken by Congress upon the sue
ject passed in that bill. II reads:
" For improving the Mokelumne river, Cali
tOrnia, by yrenOying distractions, 3 500 impruy-
ing the Sacramento and Feather rivers COlilOr-
mia, $4,000 of the money heretofore apprOpri-
ated for improving SAID river that may remain
uncNpendcd at the end of the present fiscal
year for snagging and dredging oleratiOns. and
the cost OF the proceeding hereinafter author
thoriZed. also $4,000 to build the dredges aJI-
thorlzed by the Act of July s. 1881 the balance
OF said upexpended money not 10 be used until
the Secretary OF War be satiied that hydraulic
mining hurtful to navigation has ceased
on said rivers and their tributaries.
If he Is not so satisfied he is hereby instructed
to institute such legal proceedings rs may De
necessary 10 prevent the washing. slnicing.
dumping or discharging OF detriuS, debris or
Slickcns, caused by or arising from such hy-
draulc mining, into either OF said river or any
or situations from which such detrtus debris
or SickeuS may be liable to be washed or carried
l,y- - % % 4 sal ar
tributaries and he is hereby instructed To use
OIt Of said sum rs much as maybe necessary
for said purpose
They recognized the right and justice of our
ue.itiOnS They recognized that the people
owned these uayig ibie streams, and that thi,
State. through its Legislature, had no right 10
permit acts that would destroy these public
highways. They recognized that those streams.
under the compact made between this State and
the United 5atcS, must be kept open and free 20
commerce. Now, | do not threaten; ! do not
brOwhcat ] do not ask Won utn do that which you
think is wrong. hut / do ask YOU to do what
you think would be stateSmaulike; and ask
You whether you think that the great agficuit-
ural interests of this country must be destroyed.
ana this valley submerged with u coating Of
siiCkens for the sake OF a few hydraulic miners
ow. IL You think this ought to be- the case. vote
for this bill and pile up debris behind dams
ion feet high. and lc. il in few years come
down with the NoOi ana destroy the taxable
property of this state. and the peop who are
living under those dams.
The history of all mining countries is that
they 20 to decay, while agricultural cOmmuui-
ties, on the contrary, continue steadily progress
ing IN prosperity ana popuiailou. mat ousht
to be enough of itself 10 satisfy us which is the
greater Interest, and which the interest We
ought 60 70 ter.
The question which ,,e are now called upon to
decide is whether VIII hand this land down
10 our children and our cbiidTcu's children, or
whether we viii let these mines cover it up 50
that it will be worthless for centuries II any
man can reconcile his sense Of duty with the
I 10
theory he does H.
EDfAEKS OF SENATOR PATTERSON.
Patterson addressed the Senate in reply to
portions ofChaudlers ntauflent. as follows
ilr. IifNdf5it ant Ssqdf1.s. With the load of
unfinished business growing upon us at the last
hours Ofthc session. any attempt at an extended
review Of The arguments et.Ner for or against
even so important "a measure Will not be pennis
>iblc. and viii not be attempted by me. have
already. on this same subject, received nj the
hands of the SENATE courtesy which. sir. by
me was We gratefully Appreciated, and J do
not Wish 70 ride Il irsc horse to death. favor
the final pas. age ot this bin. because without
the relief it promises, gold mining, in all Us
Iorn.s, in this State is
a DOOMED INTEREST.
And California cannot afford To loose the untold
millions which nature has here PLACED within
her reach. No country in the world has ever
equa led California in the production OF gold at
The same time nearly every thcr country il, 10
greater or less d-gree, a god producer. All
other ua'iOns are alive to he Importance OF this
industry, with one single exception, that of
China; and am aStonshcd 10 find the talented
Senator from san Francisco nrging US to follow
her example. In Russia the gold miner aver
ages but 81 y cents per day as The Iesult Of his
labor in the mines the Government has seen
ht to encourage the industry TO an extent in
1896 that the annual output there was in
creased 80 per cent. Is it not almost beyond
belief that, at that very time. while our gold
mines were ahOrding more than ten times that
remuneration T. the labor employed therein
while their yearly output WAS very nearly equal
To- the entire produce Of all the mines III the
world previOrs 10 the discovery II tn sc mines
of ours whue there sill remained in store for
us gold enough 10 more than duplicate all that
had n set been extracted, ask
X TT SOc ALMOST INCREDIBLE
That. under these circumstances there should
nave been induguratod war ot determination
upon this industry, To which We owe our very
being as n i'tateI Nor was this unparalleled
course OF action due 20 the cKStent of super
abundance ot gold in The markets Ot the world.
The production does not, by amy means, keep
pace with the increase of population AMI large
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